Maru
Brent | April 26, 2009
A friend hooked me into this character, now I can’t stop following him!
B Positive – SOTD #13
Brent | April 23, 2009
Now here is a shirt with a message.
This is not the most beautifully artistic shirt design, but I love it for a few reasons. It’s printed on what is called “The Perfect Tee”, and I’d have to say it’s named correctly. Just a very soft feel, it fits me perfectly, and it won’t shrink like other types of shirts. I really like the color as well. I’m not much of a green-wearer, but the soft, faded “grass green” is nice.
But, mostly, it’s the message. Very simply, “Be Positive”. The artist is “lunchboxbrain” (nice name), and he had a wonderful idea with this design. He states:
I wanted to do something positive so I charged the members of the Tshirt community with sending me positive messages, which I then incorporated into a giant B through many many hours of cutting up newspaper lettering. I decided that should B Positive be chosen, I would donate all of the winnings to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Capital Region, Inc. and Gilda’s Club Capital Region New York.
It’s really how we should be living anyway, but it’s just good to have reminders once in a while. My favorites on the shirt is “Act your shoe size, not your age” and “Enjoy the Ride”. All things we should be reminded of.
And just the time it took to gather all of these quotes from different people, and to cut out each letter individually from various newspapers and different fonts, then to assemble them together in the form of the letter B, I think it’s just very charming. Also, consider the fact the artist isn’t making any money off his work, every cent is being donated to charity. That’s the true genius to this: it practices what it preaches.
So today, your homework assignment is: Be Positive. Let someone in front of you when you’re waiting in traffic. Take a step back at the grocery store and let someone checkout before you. Help a stranger pick up something they’ve dropped. Whatever. Just be a positive influence in the world today.
Peace.
My Top 5 Websites
Brent | April 21, 2009
I thought today I’d take you with me on my daily travels. When I get up in the morning, grab my coffee, and sit down at the computer, there are a few websites that I go to on a daily basis. Places that I frequent that, for me, are necessary stops along the information highway. (Ya know, Al Gore invented the internetz…)
oh- and everything is click-ifiable, so you can go see for yourself where I visit…
1.) It begins and ends with Fastmail.
The most powerful email system on the planet. Nothing else even comes close. It’s actually my homepage, so when I bring up my Firefox internet browser, it’s the first thing I see. It has messages for me to respond to, forwarded notifications from other sites, and general information that I use throughout the day, saved on “Notepad” entries as references for this information. I could go on and on about how great Fastmail is, but I’ll save that for another time.
Some things are worth paying for.
2.) w00t!
For some reason, I have become quite attached to the quirky, deal-a-day website, and it’s sister websites shirt.woot and sellout.woot. (Not so much wine.woot, although I’m sure there are wine lovers that would enjoy it). If you don’t know, woot pioneered the “One day, One deal” business model, where they offer one item for sale for one day, then it’s gone. Same with shirt.woot, sort of. There’s a new shirt offered every day. Some are awful, some are funny, and some are worth buying, especially at $10 and free shipping. The thing with woot is, when it’s sold out, sorry -no more. That’s why it’s usually the second or third place I stop. Just to see what they’re offering today.
3.) My Yahoo!
I’m sure there are supporters of different homepage hosts, like google, msn, or whatever. But my preference is Yahoo’s system. My homepage that I’ve set up with them has just about everything I need all in one glance. Current AP news, sports scores and headlines, a calendar with reminders and schedule alarms, Weather, CNET tech news, Triathlon news headlines, etc. Whatever I want to know about, I make a module for it.
Wanna see it ?
4.) Twitter
I can’t even begin to say how great this is. Keep up with all your friends, or whomever you want, and also update anyone that is following you. Instantly. I have my notifications sent to my phone during the day, but shut them off at night. So in the morning, I check my twitter home page to see what I’ve missed out on.
5.) Tribtown
It’s not exactly the New York Times, but it has my local news, and it’s pretty current and up-to-date. And if there is ever any “breaking news”, like springtime flooding, a bank heist, or school closings, it will at least have a headline about such. I check this out each morning partially to catch up on any news goings-on, but I also check each day for the “Incidents and Arrests”. This is really where the interesting stuff happens. And with my line of work, I will usually know at least one person each day from the arrest column. Gotta stay current 
OK, those were my Top 5. Now comes the audience participation part of our program. Please drop me a comment, and give me your sites that you visit every morning, or every day. It doesn’t have to be long-winded, a short list will suffice. I think it’s very interesting to see where people go, and learn about neat new places to visit.
Chest Cat – SOTD #12
Brent | April 18, 2009
He’s always watching. You probably didn’t know that, but he’s there. Always there. Ceiling Cat watches everything, taking it all in. Well, the self-proclaimed “disheveled nutjob” that is Jimiyo made a shirt in homage to this mythical creature, and it’s called Chest Cat.
I’ll have to add that my daughter has taken an affinity for interesting shirts, and just absolutely loved this. Of course, being an animal lover, and cat lover specifically, didn’t hurt either.
See how happy Chest Cat makes everybody?
However, my cat was none-too-thrilled about having Chest Cat around…
Do you think I make this stuff up?!!!
(yes, click for proof of ceiling cat’s existence)
Alcohol, Fire, and Stupidity Don’t Mix
Brent | April 16, 2009
My last ride
Brent | April 14, 2009
I like bikes. Not motorcycles = bikes, but like bicycles = bikes. I used to ride all the time. Hundreds of miles a week. That’s pretty much all I’d do. Since I was in high school, really, I would ride probably 6-7 times a week. Sometimes twice a day.
But several years ago, my friend Eric talked me into trying triathlons (ya know? “swim, bike, run”). That decision made me do two things: Learn how to swim, and re-embrace running. So we pitched in a bought a self-instruction video. (Total Immersion. Excellent stuff.)
From there it was a slow transition, but I have eventually swam and ran much more than I bike now. I don’t know if I was just burnt out from all that riding, but I really liked the two new sports I was trying to master. Plus, the time to get a good bike ride is at least an hour or two. In comparison, you can get a good swim or run workout in half the time.
Sad as it sounds, the last time I rode my bike was several months ago. Every fall we take a cycling trip to the Smoky Mountains. Last year we decided to do the two highest mountains in the Eastern United States, back-to-back. First we rode up Clingman’s Dome, which is a 20-mile climb, then the next day we rode up Mt. Mitchell, which is the highest point east of the Rocky Mountains.
(click on the pics for full view) On top of Mt. Mitchell
don't look at me, look at the view
I need to start riding again…
You Have to Try This Guys! – SOTD #11
Brent | April 11, 2009
To continue with the Easter theme (sort of), I thought I’d pick You Have to Try This Guys as my Shirt of the Day today. There really is no mystery about the message of the shirt. And it has no deep, meaningful, significance to me. But it’s funny.
The absolute glee the bunny shows as he munches on a carcass of something. The little bloody paws and mouth. And the stunned, horrified expression of his buddies is great. The “grass” green shirt is a great choice for this too. I don’t usually wear this color, but it’s great for this shirt.
It’s possible that this bloody, ravenous bunny might have been inspired by this killer rabbit.
“Run Away!! Run Away!!”
The Choice Was Not Hard – SOTD #10
Brent | April 9, 2009
This is what I call a “statement shirt”. It says something about me. The title is “The Choice Was Not Hard” , and was designed by Jamie Marshall, known as “Boots” to some. Jamie is an illustrator of children’s books, and creates wonderful, whimsical scenes. I have already talked about her designs on “Explanation“, but this was her first to be printed at woot.
I like it because the placement is sort of uneven, with most of the design being on the right side of the wearer’s chest, and the smaller side centering the shirt. The best thing about the shirt, however, is what it says. Given the choice to pursue money, success, fame, fortune, and/or glory, or to just go and have fun on some “really cool waterslides”, well, it’s a pretty easy choice for me. I think it fits with my “enjoy life” mentality.
Anyone who knows what I do for a living will know that I did not seek fame, fortune, or money 
. But instead, I’m glad I have chosen to enjoy the finer things in life – what I call The Four F’s: Friends, Family, Faith, and Fun. (More on these in a post to follow).
To choose these things over money, fame, or glory?
Well….the choice was NOT hard.
Unfortunate Breakdance
Brent | April 8, 2009
I know I shouldn’t think this is as funny as I do. Sorry about that.